Common Mistakes with Mobile Email Marketing and How to Avoid Them

8/18/2014

It's no secret that cell phone use is on the rise. According to this survey, 91% of Americans own a cell phone and 52% use their cell phone to read and send email. While B2B marketers acknowledge the importance of mobile, many haven’t taken steps to serve the needs of mobile users. Given the continued rise of mobile, doing nothing is probably the biggest mistake a B2B marketer can make. For those who are reacting, these tips can help marketers avoid common mobile email mistakes.

Tips to Avoid Common Mobile Email Marketing Mistakes

Define your mobile strategy.
Before getting into tactics and design, define your goals. Analyze your audiences’ usage of mobile and determine how you can deliver something to them that is useful and usable.

Recognition and relevancy rule.
Whether viewed on-the-go or at a desk, the inbox is a crowded and competitive place. First obstacle: survive the email triage users often perform on their phones during downtime. Focused and short subject lines and clear from/senders will help your message escape inbox purging—but only valuable content will convince users to take the next step, open the email, and continue to subscribe.

Don’t assume mobile is always mobile.
Understanding context of use is critical to delivering mobile email users something effective. Many mobile email users scan for important messages and leave the rest for later review. An email previewed on a mobile device may end up read on a tablet or desktop. Offer users a choice of an email version, either when they subscribe or through header links in the email (e.g. View mobile). Users get to pick their preference and you can review your analytics to see what’s working.

Streamline and simplify.
Remove unnecessary items, edit text, reduce large images (and only iOS doesn’t block images by default) and consider load times. Know the scale you are designing for so users don’t have to resize and scroll. A functional and easy to use design will serve users across platforms.

Avoid tiny text and remember fat fingers.
Fonts sizes need to be larger and targets big enough to easily hit. The average adult finger pad is .4”. Recommendations vary by device but in general, minimum target sizes should be 44x44 pixels with adequate spacing between elements. Make sure to pad links and make call-to-actions obvious so targets are easy to identify and tap.

Don’t forget to be social.
More than 60 percent of U.S. smartphone owners are accessing the internet via their mobile device. If you have a presence on social media sites, include the links in your email and encourage following and sharing.

Optimize the entire experience.
Make sure the landing pages for your email links are optimized for mobile. If you are lucky enough to engage someone, don’t disappoint at the next step.